Frederick Ozanam (1813–1853)

Biography

Since he was a university student, Federico was a born leader, who, encouraged by his ardent zeal, organized for his classmates a movement of lay apostolate with universal projection. Sister Rosalía Rendu, a religious Daughter of Charity who was superior of a convent in a very poor neighborhood of Paris, had a decisive influence on the development of the spiritual and charitable vocation of the small nascent society, of which she can be considered a co-founder and pioneer. On April 23, 1833, the first meeting of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul took place, with Frederick and six students. Ozanam wanted this association to always be: “deeply Christian, Catholic, but absolutely secular.” From the first moment, Saint Vincent de Paul was the inspiration for the Charity Conferences, being chosen as the owner and patron of the work. Frederick took advantage, with prophetic vision, of the moment and the historical situation in which he lived, and, as Paul VI would say, he knew how to: “scrutinize the signs of the times and interpret them in the light of the Gospel.” It can be said that charity was secularized so that secular messengers could infiltrate a breath of hope into those environments, where the ravages of an incipient industrialization were evident and a new social class, the proletariat, suffered great exploitation due to poverty and ignorance. On September 8, 1853, the life of Federico - an exemplary son, loving husband and father and tireless apostle - ended when his work began to expand throughout the world.